August 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
the train to London was near; and so we departed 
from Broxboume Bury. 
The Genus Delphinium.— We intend occasion¬ 
ally to give a list of, and instructions relative to, the 
culture of some of the best tribes of hardy perennial 
flowers, and shall commence with the beautiful 
family above named, than which there are no hardy 
plants more deservedly admired. The colours of the 
flowers are mostly of the finest azure blue, or of 
shades approaching to it; their foliage is generally 
very handsome, and their heighth for the most part 
moderate. The entire habit of the family is of a 
handsome character. The following is a select list 
of the best kinds :— 
1. Delphinium albiflorum (bluish-white larkspur), 3 feet. 
2. ,, Barlowii (Barlow’s larkspur), 2 ^ to 3 feet, dark blue, 
shaded with purple ; a fine double-flowering species, of exqui¬ 
site colours.. 
3. „ elatum (tall bee larkspur), 4 feet, blue and purple. 
The lip of the flower is exactly like a bee; a curious fine 
species. 
4. ,, elatum pleno (double tall bee larkspur). 
5. ,, grandiflorum (great-flowered larkspur), 3 feet, fine 
deep blue. This is generally known in gardens as the Siberian 
larkspur, and is a very fine, but rather scarce species. 
6 . ,, grandiflorum pleno (double great-flowered larkspur), 
3 feet, equally handsome in every way as the last, and much 
more common. 
* /• ,, grandiflorum azureum (light blue great-flowered lark¬ 
spur), 2 j feet, azure blue; a new variety, exceedingly handsome. 
8 . ,, Hulmii (Hulme’s larkspur), 2 feet. This is a very 
large single-flowered variety, of beautiful pure blue colour. 
9- ,, pictum (painted-flowered larkspur), 3 feet; a curious 
species, very pretty. 
10. ,, splendens (splendid larkspur), 3 feet, blue, large flow¬ 
ers, very handsome, with large fine foliage. 
Culture .—Perennial larkspurs require a good light 
soil, consisting of one-third hazelly loam, one-third 
vegetable mould, and one-tliird peat, the whole to be 
well mixed with a little pure sand. The border must 
be dry, the soil deep, and the situation open. Some 
of the strong-growing varieties thrive well and assort 
well with the lower-growing shrubs. They are, when 
grown in a suitable soil and situation, perfectly hardy. 
The season of flowering is from July to September, 
a time of the year when flowers are in great request 
in most gardens. As soon as the flowering season is 
over, cut down the flowering stems to the part where 
the leaves are: let these remain until they turn 
yellow. Sometimes, when the season is wet, they will 
throw up small side shoots about this time of the 
year or later: those shoots must not be allowed to 
flower, or they will weaken the roots and the next 
year’s blooming. 
Propagation .—They may be increased by seeds 
and by division of the root. As they sport consider¬ 
ably by seed you have a chance of raising new va¬ 
rieties ; they will come into flower the second year 
after sowing, and, in that respect, do not impose so 
long a tax upon the patience of the cultivator as 
some other flowers. The seeds may be sown on a 
border in rows, in the compost above-mentioned. 
The month of April is the best season for sowing. 
Transplant the seedlings in the April following into 
the place where you intend them to flower. The 
other mode of increase, viz. by division of the roots, 
is the only way to keep good varieties pure and 
genuine. Dividing the roots is an operation requir¬ 
ing a steady hand, a sharp eye, and a keen-edged 
knife. The best season to do it in is the month of 
October, or as soon as the leaves turn yellow. Let 
every piece you cut off have at least two eyes to it 
and as much root as possible. Plant them half an 
inch below the surface in nursery rows, placing over 
them some kind of protection from frost, such, for 
instance, as decaying tanners’ bark or half-rotten 
265 
leaves. The autumn afterwards they may be planted 
in their blooming situation. 
FLORISTS’ FLOWERS. 
Auriculas and Polyanthuses.' —Look after seed¬ 
lings, and see that snails or slugs do not devour them. 
At this season the soil on the surface is apt to become 
sour and covered with a green crust; remove this 
carefully, and stir up the soil with an old table-fork 
or short pointed stick. Old plants must be protected 
from excessive rains. If some are observed very wet, 
lay them on one side for a day or two ; examine the 
drainage, and if it is stopped up set it right by fresh 
draining the plants. Keep your polyanthuses free 
from red spider. We have seen some lately almost 
without leaves, having been destroyed by this in¬ 
sidious enemy. 
Dry Roots of Flowers, such as ranunculuses, 
tulips, anemones, hyacinths, and narcissuses, should 
be frequently looked over, and such as are mouldy or 
decaying removed from the stock, and the affected 
part entirely washed off. Dry them thoroughly, and 
keep them in a place by themselves. 
T. Afpleby. 
GREENHOUSE AND WINDOW 
GARDENING. 
Rochea falcata. —This beautiful succulent stands 
in the same relation to the crassulas as the Macart¬ 
ney rose does to the old Provence or Cabbage rose, 
therefore it is a true crassida; but, as they say a 
good tale is not the worse for being twice told, a good 
plant may not be the worse for having more names 
than seem necessary, and this is really a good plant 
either for a cottage window or for the palace conser¬ 
vatory, and one of the easiest plants in the catalogue 
to grow and flower. I prefer the old name crassula 
falcata , but it is a distinct section of the family, not 
so brilliant as the scarlet crassulas, of which there 
are three or four sorts, but its management is much 
easier to learn, as it is never pruned. After it flowers 
once it is thrown away like a Cockscomb or a balsam, 
except when a supply of young suckers are wanted 
to increase or keep up the stock. We annually flower 
a few dozens of them in six-inch pots, and we find 
them very handy plants to put into ornamental jars 
and stands, to be placed in different parts of the rooms. 
Any situation will suit them equally well; they keep 
a long time in flower, and, to a stranger, they look 
more like artificial ornaments than actual plants, 
their leaves being of a greyish lead colour, and I 
should say from half to three-quarters of an inch in 
thickness, so that the name crassula suits them much 
better than the more modern one of Rochea, which 
is after a foreigner’s name; and falcata, the second 
name, refers to the shape of the leaves, which are 
curved somewhat like a reaping-hook or sickle— fal- 
catus being an old Roman term for any hooked in¬ 
strument. 
Some gardeners flower it two or three years run¬ 
ning, but I never saw one of them that way that I could 
fancy. If you stick one of their gouty leaves in a little 
pot of sand it will make a plant; but they have a famous 
way of making little plants, or what wc call suckers, 
among the leaves, and all that is necessary is to cut 
off' these suckers, or strip them off very carefully, 
when they have four leaves on: March is the best 
time for doing this, but it may be done any time from 
March to September. A number of these suckers is 
